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Impact Report

For plan Nutrition Education and Behavior (Colfax County)
Date November 2, 2010, 4:38 am
For Objective Short-term Show short-term objectives
Impact Report Head Start Nutrition Programs Raton Head Start – “Dad and Student Pizza Making Night” For many years, the home economist has provided nutrition programming to Head Start parents and teachers from throughout the county during their evening parent meetings at their respective Head Start sites, however it is often difficult for working parents to attend. In 2008 and 2009, the Cimarron Head Start director and the home economist planned a cooking night to directly involve the students, parents and teachers in making a healthy meal together. Although the “Student and Parent Cooking Night” was successful in Cimarron, the director was unavailable to coordinate the program this year, therefore the Raton site director asked the home economist to conduct a similar program targeting fathers and their children. Fourteen fathers, 16 students and three teachers participated in the evening where groups made homemade pizzas with a whole wheat based crust and a variety of lean meat, vegetables, fruit and cheese as toppings of their choice. As the group enjoyed the meal, the home economist presented basic nutrition information related to the pizza and the nutrients found in the kid’s MyPyramid. The importance of healthy snack choices and eating habits were also discussed with the fathers since they are often shopping for groceries and preparing meals at home. The home economist received positive feedback from the students, parents and teachers with comments such as, “The pizza was great and easy to make”, “I liked being able to cook with my daughter so she knows that dad can help in the kitchen too”, “We definitely want to have the program again next year”. Raton Head Start – “Cooking With Foods From the Garden” In the spring of 2010, one of the Raton Head Start site directors approached the Extension Office about working with their youth to plant vegetables in the greenhouse they were acquiring through grant monies they had recently received. The home economist, 4-H agent and agricultural agent teamed together to plan activities for the youth by utilizing curriculum from the Ag in the Classroom coordinator in Las Cruces. The 4-H and agricultural agents conducted seed planting activities with the youth, planting such vegetables as beans, tomatoes, onions, squash and jalapenos. At a later date, the home economist coordinated cooking activities with the 80 youth and 12 teachers/directors to make foods that would include the vegetables the students would see being produced from their greenhouse seedlings sometime in the summer. The four classes each chose a different food to make so that they could enjoy an entire meal together at lunch time. The home economist provided the ingredients, equipment and recipes for salsa, calabacitas, chef salad and bean and cheese burritos as each class rotated into the room to assist in making their chosen dish. The students and staff then went through a buffet line to sample the meal. The recipes and other nutritional information were sent home with the students to share with their families. The teachers and directors reported that they were glad students could experience first-hand the connection between foods being grown and eventually eaten. They were also very receptive to conducting the program again next year, however we learned that it would be best to begin the cooking activities at 8: 30 am to give more prep and clean up time between classes. Springer Head Start - “Healthy Eating Habits” In December of 2009, the Springer Head Start site director requested a nutrition presentation from the home economist for their parents attending their monthly parent meeting. Seventeen parents and teachers were in attendance for the evening presentations that focused on the 2-5 year old Kid’s MyPyramid; healthy eating habits, including picky eating behaviors; and ways parents and children can incorporate more physical activity into their daily lives. Parents also requested basic information on shopping and budgeting for family meals to cut costs while still providing nutritious meals for their families. Informational packets were given to those in attendance with 10 additional packets given to the teachers for the parents that were not able to attend the program. The program has resulted in an increased awareness of basic nutrition concepts by the parents and teaching staff, thereby benefiting the children involved.